Made To Love

4.10.2016

BEFORE:0kay, I promise - the multi-colored walls were not my doing!That was how it was before we bought the house. =)

The window is actually new.

I love the natural light now coming through, and we're able to open the window for some fresh air!

There was no need for me to paint the walls before putting the shiplap up.

Or in my case, "faux shiplap". I used plywood, and had Home Depot cut them down into 6" strips. A LOT cheaper that way!

This is the hallway leading to the laundry room. To the left is a closet, and to the right is the guest bathroom.

We took down all the baseboards and trim around the house, and put in new, thicker, Farmhouse-looking trim. The baseboards all throughout the house are now 6", rather than the thin builder grade trim. Makes a HUGE difference!

To the left (the blank wall), we're building some mudroom hallway cabinets.

So everything will tie together, and it'll all somewhat look like a large mudroom.

I seriously can NOT wait to have this part o the house finished!

So I actually replaced the two doors in here for some old, antique doors!

Remember, I'm going for the whole "Farmhouse" - French Country look.

Real brick flooring was out of my budget, so I found an alternative.

I found this Spanish red quarry tile in this small 6x6" square.

It was on clearance, because they only had a small amount of it left, and it was discontinued.

So I bought all that they had left, went home, and asked my construction guy if he could slice it in half, to make it appear as though it were brick.

Red wouldn't have been my first choice, but when you're on a budget, you can't be picky.

Now for the AFTER pictures!!!

These are not the greatest of pictures, because I took them at night.

0nce the hallway is done, and I post the final reveal, I'll be sure to take better quality pictures. =)

4.03.2016

Thought I'd share with y'all a little kitchen update, and also future plans I have for this space.

It's a bit difficult to photograph my Kitchen, because it's long & narrow, and I literally have almost every nook and granny filled with some piece of furniture. Also, I don't have much natural light coming through these windows.

I recently purchased these bar stools from Wayfair...

This was once the pantry with 2 french doors.

I took off the doors, covered the inside walls with bead board, added new shelving, and then trimmed it out. Now I use it for storage, and decor.

As for future plans...

Eventually we will be doing a planked ceiling in here.

I also need to build an enclosure around the refrigerator, and frame out the opening where the microwave is.

My dream would be to knock out the window you see in the kitchen, and add some french doors that opens up to a little pergola seating area.

I'd have to say, my kitchen & dining room is currently my favorite room in the house!

2.17.2016

In October 2015, we purchased my Parent's house! We had been renting from them for several years, and during that time, we were able to become Debt Free!

While we were renting, we did quite a few renovations on the house, but because we didn't own the house yet, we were a bit hesitant to make any BIG improvements or investments into the house.

(0kay, I guess knocking out the stairs, and replacing them with a spiral staircase was a pretty big deal for "renters" - ha ha))

Also while we were renting, my Parent's lived in the garage apartment.

About a week after we signed on the house, my Parent's got a place of their own, and moved out.

By then, it was November, and I was busy preparing for the Craft Fair, and the holiday's, and this room stayed empty for a few months.

January 2016 we "broke ground" (literally) on our new Master Bedroom!!!

Back when the garage was first converted into the garage apartment, the floor was never leveled. There was about a 4" difference from one side of the room to the other side of the room. I guess it never really bothered my Parent's, but I knew this was something I wanted fixed before we moved down into this room.

So a big part of our budget was just ripping out the existing tile, and having it leveled.

Instead of there being a step-down from the Kitchenette, or a step-down when you walk into this room from the Living Room, it is now all one level.

Can I just tell you...I LOVE Home Renovations, but this week was wet and cold, and mud and cement and dust and dirt was being dragged in and out of the house!

10.15.2014

I must love constant chaos at my house...or something?!?In the midst of Craft Show madness, and all the preparation that goes into that, we have more construction going on at our house!That being said, you have no idea how EXCITED I am about this!Ever since we took out our stairs, the Entryway wall looked very strange. The thermostat was now hanging out in the middle of this 2-story wall, and the return air filter grille was also just randomly hanging out. We would have to get a ladder to change out the filter, or to turn the air temperature up or down.We were also left with this light fixture that once hung above the stairs. It served no purpose anymore, and just looked odd sitting there.

I created a board and batten wall, to try and draw attention away from it all...

...but that only worked so well.

When we would have guests over, you could see their eyes wandering. ha ha

Also, above the french doors, there was supposed to be a "landing"??...just a place that I could maybe put a Christmas tree? Instead, it was a piece of plywood that we kind of just laid down temporary. It couldn't hold any real weight, but it also didn't really need to, because the railing was built around it. So once again, just another "odd" thing about the Entryway!

I guess that's what happens when you take out your STAIRCASE??!!

"Who does that?!" LOL

With the holiday's coming up, I just wanted the downstairs FINISHED! After living here for 5 years, you would think it would be. I have a problem with always wanting "change". I have changed around my downstairs sooo many times, that I haven't even really started working on the upstairs yet!

If you follow my blog, or you follow me on Facebook, you will know I LOVE DIY projects! In fact, we do almost everything ourselves!

We even did the stairs ourselves!

Problem is, here lately, I have been non stop with my business! I also have 2 Craft Shows coming up, and everything has been about that!

I've had to put the DIY projects on hold, except, I really-really needed these things done before the Holiday's! We are hosting Thanksgiving! Whohoo! =)

That's where my awesome neighbor friend's come in! They own their own construction/remodeling company, and they do fabulous work!

I started making a list a few weeks ago of everything that needed done, big and small, that I just knew I would not have time to do myself.

Although, the Entryway wasn't something I would have done myself anyways!

Which brings us to TODAY...

They are now extending out the upstairs floor, and the railing will go straight across.

We JUST installed our railing a few months ago, and we're already changing it. ha ha